HSBC Group has reached agreement with Grupo Banistmo SA, the leading Panama-based banking group in Central America, to make a tender offer to acquire all the outstanding shares of Banistmo. The transaction is valued at $1.77 billion.

Banistmo owns 99.39 per cent of Panama’s largest bank, Primer Banco del Istmo, which offers a full range of personal, commercial and investment banking services through 42 branches.

The Banistmo group also owns the country’s largest insurance company, Compania Nacional de Seguros (Conase).

The Banistmo group has a significant presence across Central America, with a further 106 branches in Costa Rica, Honduras, Colombia and Nicaragua. Additionally, Banistmo has a 56 per cent stake in Banco Salvadoreño that operates through 72 branches in El Salvador.

HSBC Group already has a very substantial presence in North and South America.